Andrew Nembhard Gives Pacers First Win Over Knicks

Source: Andy Lyons / Getty

(INDIANAPOLIS, IN) – Andrew Nembhard’s offense comes alive in the final minutes of the game, including the game winning three-pointer in Indiana’s 111-106 win over the New York Knicks.

1. First Quarter

After promising starts in each of the first two games, it would seem likely the Indiana Pacers would start off well at home and with the New York Knicks without OG Anunoby. Josh Hart got the scoring started with a three off a Precious Achiuwa offensive rebound. New York would not score another field goal for four minutes. Between those field goals, Indiana outscored New York 14-1. The Pacers got a three from Aaron Nesmith and two triples from Tyrese Haliburton. Achiuwa halted that run for the Pacers with another offensive rebound and then put it through the hoop. With 5:04 left in the quarter, Indiana took its largest lead of the quarter at 20-8 following a Myles Turner layup. New York trimmed its deficit to four points after a Donte DiVincenzo three pointer with 1:05 left. Indiana scored the final four points of the quarter to lead 28-20. Haliburton led all scorers with 10 points followed by DiVincenzo with 8 points. Indiana shot 54.5% from the field compared to 36.8% for New York. Indiana outrebounded New York 11-10 in the first quarter.

2. Second Quarter

Quarter two would be a microcosm of how the first two games went for the Indiana Pacers. New York opened the first four minutes of the quarter by outscoring Indiana 15-6 to tie the game up at 35 before Alec Burks completed the three-point play to give the Knicks a one-point lead. Prior to that, it was DiVincenzo carrying the offense for NYK. He scored seven straight points leading up to the Burks three-point play. Myles Turner gave Indiana the lead back off a midrange jump shot and then Haliburton knocked down back-to-back threes to put the Pacers up five. Indiana then took an eight-point lead after Turner knocked one down with 6:11 remaining in the half. The Knicks then went on an eleven-point run to take a three-point lead after a Burks three-pointer. Indiana was able to push the lead back to six but led 63-58 at intermission. Haliburton and Burks each scored 13 points in the second quarter to lead all scorers. Haliburton led all scorers with 23 points followed by DiVincenzo with 15 points. Jalen Brunson was held to 13 points on 5/12 shooting. New York shot 70% in the second quarter. At halftime, Indiana was +2 in the rebounding category.

3. Third Quarter

Indiana’s bench was such a key part of their success in games one and two. In tonight’s game it would not be and that came to light in the third quarter. The second half started with the Pacers maintaining a two-possession lead before DiVincenzo made it a 69-66 game after scoring his eighth straight point with 9:14 left in the quarter. Indiana scored the next eight points to retake a double-figure lead after a Pascal Siakam fadeaway. With 6:18 left in the quarter, T.J. McConnell and Obi Toppin were subbed into the game with a 77-71 Indiana lead. The game hung around between a four-to-six-point advantage for Indiana nearly the next three minutes. DiVicenzo’s third triple of the quarter made it a one-point game with 3:24 remaining in the quarter. Toppin made his first field goal of the night on the following possession to make it 83-80. New York then went on a 10-0 run to take its largest lead of the game with 44.4 seconds left in the third. Isaiah Jackson made a layup to end the run and conclude the scoring in the period. After three, New York led 90-85. DiVincenzo led all scorers in the quarter with 17 to take the scoring lead for the game after three quarters with 32 points.  

4. Fourth Quarter

With the way that New York closed the third quarter, it felt like the Knicks had all the momentum and silenced the sold-out crowd in Gainbridge Fieldhouse. New York was able to push its lead to nine points on two different occasions to really make Pacer fans sweat. With 9:46 left in the game, New York led 98-89 after a Miles McBride three. Indiana responded with a 10-1 run to tie the game at 99 with 6:58 left in the contest. Haliburton scored the first seven points and then Siakam completed a three-point play to tie the game. On the following offensive possession for the Pacers, Siakam went to the line with the chance to give the Pacers a two-point lead. Siakam only made one, so Indiana led 100-99 with 5:42 left in the game. There wasn’t much offense the next three minutes. After a Hart free throw to tie the game at 102 with 2:26 left, Andrew Nembhard put Indiana ahead with a layup eight seconds after a Turner block on a Hart layup. Brunson went to the line after the layup, but only made one free throw. On the following possession for Indiana, Siakam was able to convert a layup to put the Pacers ahead 106-103 with 54 seconds remaining because of a goaltending violation by DiVincenzo. Despite being hobbled with a bad foot, Brunson tied the game up on New York’s next possession on a triple with 42 seconds left. Haliburton followed it up with a missed three, but Aaron Nesmith was able to bring down the offensive rebound. Indiana’s offense was running out of time and then Nembhard drilled a thirty-one foot three in the final seconds of the shot clock to put Indiana ahead 109-106 with 17.8 seconds left. Brunson missed a pullup three because he was trying to get a foul call on Turner, but the officials didn’t call it. Nesmith converted the two free throws and then DiVincenzo missed a three as time expired. Indiana wins it 111-106.

5. Top Performers

Tyrese Haliburton (35p, 7a, 4r, 2s, 6 threes), Pascal Siakam (26p, 7r), Myles Turner (21p, 10r), and Aaron Nesmith (10p, 6r). For New York, Donte DiVincenzo (35p, 3r, 7 threes), Jalen Brunson (26p, 6a), Alec Burks (14p, 4r), Josh Hart (10p, 18r, 4a), and Miles McBride (10p). For tonight’s full box score, click here.

6. Notes

• Indiana Pacers have now won 9 straight home games
• Indiana Pacers have now won all four playoff games at Gainbridge Fieldhouse
• Indiana has led at halftime in all three games
• New York’s bench outscored Indiana’s 24-14
• Tyrese Haliburton is the first player since Paul George in 2014 with 35+ points and 6+ threes in a playoff game
• Tyrese Haliburton with back-to-back games with 30+ points since scoring 33 (11/27/23 vs Portland) and 44 points (11/30/23 at Miami)
  • 3rd time this season he has scored 30+ points in back-to-back games
• Myles Turner recorded his 3rd career playoff double-double
• Pascal Siakam scored 20+ points for the first time since game two against Milwaukee
• Jalen Brunson’s 26 points are the fewest he’s scored in a game since game two against Philadelphia (24)
• Donte DiVincenzo has topped his playoff career high for a 4th consecutive game
• Donte DiVincenzo’s 7 threes tied the most in a playoff game in Knicks franchise history
  • John Starks on 5/11/1995 at Indiana
  • Derek Harper on 5/4/1995 at Cleveland
• Donte DiVincenzo scored 30+ points for the 8th time in his career (regular season and postseason)
• Donte DiVincenzo has now scored 15, 12, and 17 points in the third quarter
• Josh Hart recorded his 9th double-double of his playoff career

7. Next Up

It’s another quick turnover for the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks. The two teams will have a day off tomorrow and then play game four on Mother’s Day Sunday. The status for OG Anunoby is still up in the air. Pat Boylan will have the Kroger Pregame Show starting at 3pm. The series schedule:

• Game 1 – Monday, May 6th, 2024, at Madison Square Garden – NYK 121 – 117
• Game 2 – Wednesday, May 8th, 2024, at Madison Square Garden – NYK 130 – 121
• Game 3 – Friday, May 10th, 2024, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse – IND 111 – 106
• Game 4 – Sunday, May 12th, 2024, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse – 3:30pm (ABC)
• Game 5 – Tuesday, May 14th, 2024, at Madison Square Garden – 8pm (TNT)
• Game 6 (if necessary), Thursday, May 16th, 2024, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse – TBD (ESPN)
• Game 7 (if necessary), Saturday, May 18, 2024, at Madison Square Garden – TBD